Spanish novelist Juan Marse passes away at 87

The literary agency of Juan Marse says the Spanish novelist has died. He was 87.

The Carmen Balcells agency announced his passing on Sunday. It did not give a reason for his death.

Marse was one of Spain's most-respected novelists over the past few decades and the winner of the 2008 Cervantes Prize, the Spanish-speaking world's top literary award.

Marse's most important novel was “Úlitmas tardes on Teresa” (“Last Afternoons with Teresa”) published in 1965. It chronicles the misadventure of a working-class adolescent who tries to win over a girl from the upscale side of Barcelona.

Marse, a native of the city, followed that success with several other novels that form a portrait of the social transformation of Spain during the latter part of the 20th century.